


Right Here Right Now

by revior



Category: We Are Who We Are (TV)
Genre: But Also This Is A Slow Burn?, Developing Friendships, Drama, Drama & Romance, Drinking, First In The Fandom, Friendship, I'm Bad At Writing Slow Burns, Kind of a slow burn, M/M, Male Slash, Male-Female Friendship, Not Beta Read, Not a Crossover, Romantic Confusion, Slash, So yeah, Strangers to Lovers, Tension, We are who we are, hbo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-18
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:28:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26527498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/revior/pseuds/revior
Summary: Fraser finds himself developing a strong bond with Caitlin. After spending time at her house, the boy starts to interest himself in Danny, Caitlin's older brother. But the memory of seeing Jonathan in the showers is still very present in his head and apparently the two seem pretty compatible, according to Caitlin. And spending time together just seems to influence everything.replaces the show after episode 1
Relationships: Fraser WIlson & Caitlin Poythress, Fraser Wilson/Jonathan Kritchevsky, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: PLEASE CONSIDER FRASER AS A 17-YEAR-OLD. I DID NOT KNOW THAT HE WAS 14 WHEN I BEGAN WRITING THIS SO FOR LIKE ALL KINDS OF PURPOSES I AM CHANGING HIS AGE TO 17. I AM ALSO MAKING CAITLIN THAT AGE TO MAKE THINGS EASIER.
> 
> So I started writing this immediately after Episode One came out, and it doesn't exactly follow the show (right now I have no idea where the show is going, but we'll see). This means there are inaccuracies but to make this clear this is set in the Canon Setting.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Note: I also tried to follow the tone of the show in this story, which I hope is noticeable.

**DISCLAIMER: PLEASE CONSIDER FRASER AS A 17-YEAR-OLD. I DID NOT KNOW THAT HE WAS 14 WHEN I BEGAN WRITING THIS SO FOR LIKE ALL KINDS OF PURPOSES I AM CHANGING HIS AGE TO 17. I AM ALSO MAKING CAITLIN THAT AGE TO MAKE THINGS EASIER.**

* * *

“So, what should I call you?”

The girl didn’t answer straight away. She fiddled with her father’s shirt, the shirt Fraser could only admire from apart but wanted to wear desperately. “Harper.”

“But your name is Caitlin, isn’t it?”

“Just call me Harper.”

Her response made Harper think of a line he had read not long ago. He decided not to point it out, because Caitlin probably wasn’t the type of person to read poetry and there was the likely possibility that she would find him thinking about it strange. Maybe even weird or creepy.

“I’m Fraser,” he said, introducing himself. The boy felt as if it was his turn to do so because that’s what his teachers always taught him to.

“I know,” was all she said.

“We’re neighbors.”

“I know.”

The third desperate attempt by Fraser to start the conversation failed, making him nervous. He didn’t particularly care what other people thought of him, but the alcohol in his system made him susceptible to all kinds of thoughts that weren’t usually in his head.

He started to scratch the color off his right middle finger. Fraser was starting to grow tired of the black and the yellow. Black especially.

“You’re nervous.”

“Yes.”

“Am I the one making you nervous?” asked Harper, playing with a strand of her hair.

Fraser couldn’t tell what the girl actually thought, unlike most other people he met. At that moment, Cait as her mother liked to call her, could either be worried about the way she appeared or was enjoying the power she had over him.

He couldn’t say that either was right, though. At least not for sure.

“No, I think it’s the alcohol and the jetlag.”

“You like to drink.”

He decided to not interpret her words as a suggestion to the fact that he could have a substance abuse issue. Instead, he smiled – a genuine smile – and bit the chain that was hanging around his neck for a few seconds before letting the act go and deciding to answer.

“Thank you for pointing out the obvious.”

“No problem.” Caitlin smiled now, realizing that things she said couldn’t really offend him. “You have two moms.”

“Yeah, I do.”

“How does that feel?”

“Normal, I guess. I mean, I never really had anything else, so I can’t tell the differences between your parents and mine.”

“You’re from New York,” she pointed out, a spark appearing in her eyes. She was interested in the topic.

“Yeah, I am.”

“I’ve never been there.”

“What’s up with people here never having been to New York? It’s like the French never going to Paris. That and the weird obsession everyone has with ID’s,” he laughed, unsure of why he did so. At least it seemed to release some of the tension.

The people in the coffee shop didn’t seem to notice the two teens, even if they didn’t fit in with others at all.

“Most of us never actually go to the States. And when we do go, we mostly visit our families and our friends. It just so happens that none of us have those in New York. Jonathan lived in New York for a little while, though.”

“Is he the army guy?” Fraser realized after he said those words that pretty much everyone, where he lived, was a soldier ‘guy’ or a soldier ‘girl’, which made his question completely irrelevant but Harper seemed to understand it.

“Yes. You would get along with him pretty well. He’s one of the only people here that will ever truly understand your way of thinking.”

The two went quiet at that. They both started to think in their own ways, just when they were starting to get along together and the awkwardness between them was completely gone.

“So, where are you from?”

“California.”

“People there have a similar way to thinking as the people in New York.”

“True,” admitted Harper. “But there’s still a distinct difference between the two.”

“Yeah.”

“I like your way of dressing. A distinct difference between you and every other boring person on the camp.”

This compliment made Fraser laugh. He bit his chain again, the thinner one because the thicker one felt strange in his mouth. “Thank you, I think. I like your shirt.”

“That was a compliment. And yes, I stole it from my dad.”

“You’re stealing on an army base? How rebellious of you.”

“What are they going to do? Arrest me?”

Fraser thought of the conversation he had with the girl that asked him about girlfriends the day before. Her name had somehow escaped him, which was strange because he was especially good at remembering people’s names.

“Maybe they will arrest you. That would be a funny thing to witness.”

“It would.” Caitlin put her hands up as if to create a form of a headline. “Girl at army camp gets arrested for borrowing her father’s shirt.”

Both of them laughed. Fraser realized that his order still hadn’t arrived yet, but that was probably normal since the coffee shop was completely filled.

“You’re the type of person to not follow the rules,” said Fraser, not matter-of-factly but more like a question.

“I guess.”

“I am, too. Well, my rules have never been particularly clear, but I don’t even follow the ones that were set in place by my moms.”

“Why is that?”

“I just always found the rules they put in place pointless. Maybe they’re there for a reason, but I don’t see it.”

The waitress brought Fraser’s order. “My brother follows all the rules. Well, he pretends to do so. He doesn’t actually do it, he just appears to be doing so in front of our parents.”

“That sounds annoying.”

“It is.”

“I have a question for you.”

“Go ahead.”

The boy hesitated before asking his question. He took a sip of his drink, then realized that the longer the silence will be, the more tension will build up so he decided to just ask it. “You didn’t seem to like me when I saw you on the beach yesterday. And before that.”

“I never say I didn’t like you, I just didn’t know you.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

“I have one more question.”

“Go ahead.”

“Please get drunk with me.”


	2. Chapter 2

Fraser and Caitlin didn’t end up getting drunk. They were about to when the latter received a phone call from her brother, asking her when she was coming home. “Soon,” she said.

“So no getting drunk?” asked Fraser as the two walked out of the coffee shop. The boy tipped the waitress the American way, even though Harper told him that it was okay to not tip. That was Europe, after all.

“No. You can come with me, though.”

“Okay.”

Fraser felt the sudden urge to put on a song that fit the mood the world was in at that instant, but he decided against it. He looked at the nails on his left hand and realized he would have to paint them soon again sometime, along with buying new earphones. His current ones broke when he was walking drunk on that bridge the day before.

“Is your brother going to hate me?”

“Why would you ask that?”

“I always feel like people hate me.”

“Oh.”

The Wilson boy realized how awkward he made the entire situation. He thought of changing the subject but finally decided against it. “Yeah.”

“He won’t, I think. He’s not the type of person to.”

“Hate people?”

“Hate people without a reason to.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

His brain went through all the possible reasons that would cause Caitlin’s older brother to hate him. He finally settled on the fact that if the brother was a conservative prick, then anything was possible. And if he wasn’t, then there was nothing to worry about.

“He won’t hate you,” cleared up Cait, as if having read Wilson’s head perfectly. “And before you ask, I’m sure.”

\-------

Caitlin was only half right. Danny, as he introduced himself, didn’t seem to hate Fraser, but he didn’t exactly seem to be happy with the idea of interacting with him. Maybe he was an old-minded conservative fucker, he just hid it well.

“Want to come to my room?”

“Sure.”

Fraser followed Caitlin into her room, feeling Danny’s eyes drilling holes in his back as he did so. Wilson hoped that Danny didn’t think that the two would have sex in Caitlin’s room. He hoped Caitlin didn’t think that.

Her room was nicer than he imagined. There were posters everywhere. Some of bands and singers he knew well and some he hadn’t and that made him feel clueless and helpless.

The boy immediately checked out her collection of books that was displayed on a shelf above her bed. His eyes scorched the books to find anything that would include a good work of literature. Poetry, in other words.

Finally, his eyes settled on a fairly thick collection and he picked the book up. “Have you read this?”

“I have it for our Literature class. I think we’ll start reading it soon.”

Fraser was mildly disappointed that the girl hadn’t read it, but he knew that most people didn’t and couldn’t enjoy poetry in the way he did. That’s why his friends back in New York were so special to him. They understood.

His eyes then went over the rest of the room. The open notebook on her desk that revealed a test that she completed flawlessly piqued his attention. “Harper isn't your last name.”

“Yes.”

“I thought it was.”

"Why would you think that?"

"I don't know, I just assumed."

"Well, it isn't."

“It just suits me better.”

“I guess it does.”

“When did you start using it?”

“I don’t know, it’s been a long time.”

“I like it.”

"Thanks.”

Fraser Wilson thought about how strange it would be to go by ‘Wilson’. It just didn’t fit who he was, but that’s probably why Caitlin decided to go by Harper. Caitlin and Cait just didn’t fit who she really was. And they were both stuck with those names forever.

“I love your room,” he pointed out, looking around to emphasize the effect of his compliment as if she couldn’t tell what room he was talking about.

Caitlin matched his gaze and followed it around the room and then waiting for a good minute before answering. “Really?”

“Yeah, it looks very emotionally comforting.”

“I guess it is. Thanks.”

“No problem.”

“How’s your room?” asked Caitlin.

Fraser groaned, then falling down on his back and looking at the ceiling where Caitlin put some kind of mini postcards from different destinations. “I didn’t even unpack yet. I came here yesterday.”

“Oh yeah, I forgot. Sorry.”

“No, don’t be. It’s weird to think I was in New York just two days ago.”

“How’s the jetlag for you?”

“Uh, it was hard to get used to it at first. Drinking and then blacking out at some point didn’t help at all, but it’s not as bad as I imagined the worst case scenario to be.”

“Things usually aren’t the worst case scenario.”

“Maybe for you.”

Fraser’s words made the tension in the room rise again. Caitlin just looked away, probably not knowing how to respond to such a statement.

The boy could almost feel the stares of the people on the walls on him, as if the pictures were judging him for what he just said.

He heard birds chirping outside and soldiers marching somewhere in the distance. Both of those were possible to catch because the window was open. This made Fraser wonder how long it had been open before he walked into the bedroom and if Caitlin left it open at night. And if she did, what kind of bugs were attacking her all night long. If there were any, of course.

Harper then stood up out of nowhere and walked to a speaker that was resting next to the books on the bookshelf. She turned on the song and then walked back to the spot where she was sitting before and laid down.

“Do you know them?”

Fraser searched his mind for any memory of the song, but he didn’t. “No.”

“Really? I really think that you would like them if you started listening to them a lot.”

The boy decided not to point out that he would start to like literally anything if he were to listen to it incessantly. But then again, the song was kind of catchy, and it held his attention completely.

Maybe he would learn to like them.

\-------

The two just laid there on the floor as songs changed. Fraser knew almost none of the songs that were on Harper’s playlist but he liked every single one of them and he made a mental reminder to ask her to send it to him later.

About an hour of that, a knock came on the door. The elder of the Poythress children walked in. He paused for a moment when he saw the two staring into the ceiling motionless and their stares blank. “We’re going to the beach. Do you guys want to come with us?”

Caitlin turned to face Fraser. She didn’t say anything but the boy could tell that she was asking him a question.

“I don’t mind.”

“Okay, then we’re going,” said Caitlin, turning to her brother. “Just give us a bit. I need to get my things and so does Fraser.”

Danny nodded. “Be ready outside in like fifteen minutes.” He then walked away, not closing the door behind him as he did so.

“I’ll go get my things,” said Fraser, standing up. He didn’t wait for Cait to answer before walking out of the room.

\-------

Twenty-five minutes later, all of them were ready outside, but they still didn’t move.

“What are we waiting for?”

“Jonathan is joining us. And maybe one or two other soldiers,” answered Danny, looking at his watch. He seemed nervous.

The other Poythress child groaned and kicked the dirt a few times, then scraped some of it off her shoes. She then sat on the ground, oblivious to the fact that they were in the middle of the street and took out her earphones. She plugged them in and put one in her ear. Caitlin then looked up and faced Fraser, and even though she didn’t say anything, Fraser understood the question.

He sat down next to her and took the other earphone that she handed him. She then pressed Play and the two continued listening to the playlist from the exact point where they left off.

A few songs passed by and then Jonathan finally arrived, all alone contrary to what Danny said.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> T.W.: use of swearing (i don't know if this actually bothers anyone, but I've received comments asking me to put this on another fic so here you go)

The teens missed the bus they were supposed to go to and almost missed the next one. Fraser made a mental note to buy himself the yearly ticket that all the other ones had the next day. On the way to town, he also saw a nice shop and made a second mental note to himself, this one to buy school supplies for Monday when he would start school.

The bus way wasn’t long, just long enough for Fraser and Caitlin to get through four and a half full songs.

The boys and girls settled down on the same spot as the day before which let the Wilson boy to the conclusion that this became a habit, something they would do often to every day after school and especially on the weekends.

He wanted to say that he understood why, but he really didn’t. The beach wasn’t exactly neat, meaning all kinds of people let their trash on it, but he had to admit that the water seemed especially nice.

Fraser watched the other ones walk into the sea, considering asking Harper to stay with him for a second before realizing that it would probably ruin her fun day, and wrote down little notes in the notebook that he brought with him.

“A diary, huh?” said the almost-man with a mild accent.

“A notebook.”

“I’m sorry if this comes off as stupid, but I don’t really see the difference between the two. But I will gladly listen if you want to clarify.”

“You’re Jonathan, right?”

“Yep, that’s me,” chuckled the soldier, running his hand over his buzzcut before covering it up with a baseball hat. It was a New York Yankees baseball hat, but something made Fraser doubt that the soldier had any interest in the club or the sport.

“I was a little confused when I walk into that thing the other day. I don’t really know my way around here, and I just wanted to explore for a bit and I just–”

“Don’t stress it. The guys made a really big deal out of it, but they weren’t serious when they were laughing and stuff. It’s just the way they are.”

“I’m sorry for you, then.”

Shrieks came from the see as Jonathan scoffed and chuckled. “Witty, aren’t you?”

“Maybe.”

Fraser thought about how broad the soldier’s vocabulary was and then remembered what Harper said to him in the coffee shop. ‘Jonathan lived in New York for a little while.’ But if his knowledge of the English language was that good, then he must’ve spent more than a little while in English speaking territories.

“So, am I getting that explanation?”

“Of the difference between a notebook and a diary?”

“Yeah, that one. I don’t remember asking for any other definitions, but maybe I’m just forgetful.” Jonathan smirked at that, which made Fraser realize that the Soldier seemed to be extremely smart and was probably making allusion to that.

“Well, it all depends on how you look at it. You can use a diary as a notebook and a notebook as a diary. It all depends on how you actually use it and I use this one as a notebook and not and not as a diary. Do you understand the difference now?”

“I guess I do.”

“It really isn’t a hard thing to understand, so I doubt you couldn’t.”

“I repeat, witty.”

“Why aren’t you swimming?”

“I already went swimming the day before. Plus, I light get called back to the base any second because it looks like the other guys are completely useless when it comes to handling anything that involves speaking English. So if they call me I have to be there as soon as possible, which leaves me no time to change and get dry. This means I get to stay here on the beach and annoy you as you full up your not-diary.”

Fraser Wilson chuckled at that. He looked up from his notebook to the beach, seeing Caitlin looking at him, Danny by her side. “They’re staring at us.”

“Is that necessarily a bad thing?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“How would them staring at us ever mean a good thing?”

“Maybe they’re jealous of your style and your creativity?” suggested Jonathan, picking up some sand and playing with it by putting it from one hand to the other. “I know I am.”

“No, they aren’t,” responded Wilson, completely ignoring the compliment.

The younger boy stood up and started walking towards the water. “Hi.”

The others greeted him back.

“What’s so interesting about me?”

“What?” asked Danny, dumbfounded.

“You were all staring in my direction and I just wanted to know why. What’s so interesting about that spot?”

“They were talking about your outfit.”

“Thanks for telling me, Britney. What’s up with my outfit?”

“I think they like it but they’re too scared to admit it because in their weird minds, feminine means gay,” laughed Harper.

“No we don’t, Cait. Stop lying.”

“So you people think I’m gay?”

Danny cleared his throat and looked down at the sea. Fraser wondered what was so interesting about it when the first finally decided to talk. “Well, why else would you go out dressed like that?”

“Why would you ask that, Danny? That’s just stupid of you.”

“I’m serious.”

“This is why I hate places like these. As soon as someone doesn’t dress like everyone else they’re considered gay or whatever. I’m not gay if that’s what you’re wondering. I just don’t fucking care what others think. And by others, I mean bitch boys like you.”

With that, Fraser turned around and walked back to the spot where he was sitting before.

“’Bitch boys’. Interesting use of words. Is that also directed towards me?”

“You’re not annoying like them.”

“If I asked you if you were gay because I genuinely wanted to know would that make me as bad as them?”

“No, I don’t think you could be as bad as them. But then again, you never know with these small towns, right?”

The question that was more like a statement made the soldier laugh a lot. “I guess you really don’t. But I wish I could make you understand that just because I dress in the clothes that were designated to me by my superiors, I’m not a ‘bitch boy’.”

“I never said you were. But if you continue acting like this, I just might.”

“A very credible threat,” joked Jonathan.

Fraser didn’t answer to that. He hated feeling powerless, and this situation made him feel exactly like that. He hated that whatever he would answer would make him come off as soft to his new acquaintance who probably already had a negative image of him in his brain.

Jonathan seemed to notice how uncomfortable the younger boy looked. He looked away, picking up more sand since what he was playing with already ran out of his hands and back onto the beach, and repeating what he was doing before.

Both boys were ignoring each other – or more precisely didn’t know what to say and purposely stayed quiet to make it less awkward – and listened to the cheerful screams that their friends made in the sea. The Poythress boy being the loudest, of course.

“I have an idea,” finally said Jonathan. “How about I show you around?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was wrapping this chapter up and then realized the new episode came out. I kind of wanted to make this chapter longer? But I hope you guys still enjoy it!
> 
> Now I'm off to watch Ep 2!!!


End file.
